Aircraft owners and operators are held to high standards when it comes to the legal "duty of care" owed to others. If carelessness or recklessness can be proven, then the owner will be held liable for the damages suffered by injured parties -- including passengers, people on the ground, and even the pilot. Even if the owner was not operating the aircraft when the accident occurred, the owner may still be held liable under a legal theory called vicarious liability. This theory is similar to the way in which employers may be legally responsible for the actions of their employees in certain situations.

Commercial airlines fall under the legal classification of a "common carrier," because they hold themselves out to the public as willing to carry all passengers who buy a ticket. Common air carriers are held to different (usually more stringent) standards than are private carriers. The FAA is the principle federal agency responsible for regulating air carriers -- imposing uniform standards and operating procedures, and monitoring a carrier's internal standards. An understanding of complex FAA rules and regulations is necessary in order to be successful in bringing an aviation accident claim against a common carrier such as a commercial airline.

The manufacturer of an aircraft can be held liable if the victim of an accident can prove that a defect in the product (the aircraft) or a component part caused his or her injuries, under a legal theory known as "strict liability". It is important to remember that liability laws differ from state to state. (More on product liability in aviation accident cases).

In many cases, both the pilot and the manufacturer may be held liable for an aviation accident. This raises a legal issue called "comparative fault," meaning that the judge or jury during trial must determine the percentage of liability attributable to each of the defendants. For example, a pilot may be 35 percent at fault for losing control of an aircraft, but a manufacturer may be 65 percent at fault for defective landing gear. Only a few states bar recovery from a manufacturer if the pilot's negligence contributed to a crash; most states use comparative fault and distribute the blame between the two parties.

A primary duty of the federal government is to control all air traffic. The FAA is ultimately responsible for this enormous function. If an aviation accident involves a collision or other avoidable navigation error, a key question is whether or not the FAA and air traffic controllers did their job correctly.